- Modena is a cathedral city located in the Po Valley on two rivers, the Secchia and Panaro, which are tributaries of the river Po and is in the Emilia-Romagna Region of northern Italy.
History
- Dating from before the 3rd century BCE, the city was refounded by the Romans as Mutina in 183 BCE in Italia.
- Mutina was famed for factories that exported terracotta lamps across the Roman Empire.
- Today Modena is famous for the manufacture of Balsamic Vinegar.
- It also the location of the Head Offices for the sports car manufacturers, Ferrari, De Tomaso and Maserati.
Battle of Mutina (43 BCE)
- Pliny the Elder specifically mentions the use of messenger Pigeons at the Battle of Mutina (Modena) on 21 April, 43 BCE. Pliny describes how the besieged city used Messenger Pigeons to communicate with the relief army.
- Brutus himself, besieged inside Modena, attached the messages to the legs of the Pigeons to contact his allies Hirtius and Decimus.
Roman Sites
- Novi Ark Archeological Park
- Located on the surface of the underground Novi Ark Car Park, all the artefacts were excavated at 16 feet (5m) below surface level and then reassembled on the surface and put on public display.
- On display are parts of a cobbled Roman Road, a Necropolis which held 493 burials and a collection of Amphorae.
Museums
- Palazzo dei Musei (Palace of the Museums)
- Located at ex S. Agostino hospital, Viale Vittorio Veneto, 9, 41121, Modena, it holds several museums:
- Roman Lapidary Museum
- The museum is on the ground floor, and holds Roman Funerary Monuments such as Sculptures, Reliefs and Inscriptions found during excavations of Mutina’s various Necropolises.
- Estense Lapidary Museum
- The museum holds stone coffins and tombstones on display.
- Roman Lapidary Museum
- Located at ex S. Agostino hospital, Viale Vittorio Veneto, 9, 41121, Modena, it holds several museums:
- Civic Museum of Modena
- Located at Piazza Sant’ Agostino, Modena.
- The museum holds Finds from the Pre-history to the Middle Ages, including some artefacts from the Roman period, in particular, Amphoras, oil lamps and the Lastra dei Nobidi. This is the Marble slab of the Niobids, a bas-relief depicting a scene with several figures from the Greek myth of the Niobids.
- Located at Piazza Sant’ Agostino, Modena.
Roman Roads
Modena